@Kingston_va: Current Raider I’m most thankful for is @MarkDavisRaider without his vision there would be no Gruden 2.0 or that stud Mayock in his rightful place! It’d be an honor to shake Mark’s hand opening day in Vegas 2020.

@gjrrainey: Mark Davis. He knows enough to stay out. His work to get to Las Vegas, although heartbreaking, is the right business move.

@jdixvx: If Derek Carr hadn’t greatly improved his performance when pressured they would not have a winning record, so despite the cold weather issues, I am thankful for him. Maybe Gruden should send him and the receiving corps up to North Dakota in Jan-Feb to toughen up.

@Slickrick6230: Mike Mayock He’s the best GM the Raiders have had since …. well since the days Ron Wolf had some say in personnel decisions.

@BeTheOtherHalf: Has to be Josh Jacobs. Good running game helps with time of possession thus keeping the ball out of your opponents hands.

@macomboys: Derek Carr. He is what this team needs. After 15-plus years of floundering at the position, it’s great to have a man who can lead and play. The most important piece of the Raiders puzzle.

Now on to your questions:

Q: Do you feel Carlson’s has lost some of Gruden’s confidence? — Nathan Murray (email)

Probably a little, although not enough to make a change. He expected that 43-yard field goal to be made, although it took a huge curve at the end. Was it the wind or the way Carlson hit it? He’ll get to show if he’s a cold-weather kicker at Arrowhead.

Q: Did we squeeze all the juice out of this season? With who we have, who we are, where we’re going… did we exceed our expectations for the First Gruden/Mayock season? — Todd Bristol (email)

Based on the the way things were going, 8-8 will be a downer and 7-9 a disappointment. Winning nine or 10 games would be exceeding expectations, no doubt.

Q: Any thoughts on why Isaiah Johnson did not see more snaps after the game was basically over? What about using him this week to match up with Kelce? His size and length leads me to believe he might best be the best matchup. — @oneida415

I believe getting Johnson more time, especially with the way the Jets were moving in the passing game, would have been a good move. He’s played only 12 snaps in three games since coming off injured reserve. They need to see more of him. But keep in mind game time is awarded based on practice performance.

Q: How would you rate how Paul Guenther is doing — @urbanteaaa

Defense was doing much better at home during the three wins, particularly in the rush and coverage areas. The whole team was MIA against the Jets. Have seen no signs that Gruden is considering a change. A bad finish could change that.
Raiders defensive coordinator Paul Guenther’s unit had improved of late until 34-3 loss to the Jets. Aric Crabb/Bay Area News Group

Q: You see any big time trades for the Raiders this offseason ? — Casey Childers (email)

Got burned pretty bad in the Antonio Brown trade. I think Gruden and Mike Mayock at this point are more comfortable working through the draft rather than bringing in finished products. Still believe at this point Derek Carr will be the quarterback in Las Vegas. But if the show closes poorly in Oakland and Carr struggles, he’d be the biggest name available.

Q: This season has been a big step forward. I feel another solid draft and another year of free agency and we should be a double digit win team for the foreseeable future……thoughts? — Mike Nicosia (email)

They could be good next year and the year after. But the whole year-after-year thing is always a reach. There’s only one New England. Look at how good the Rams and Bears were last year and where they are now. Success is fleeting in the NFL.

Q: Do you believe Carr is the long term solution at QB? A good QB’s talent should have some impact even when the overall team is playing poorly? — Adrian Paco (email)

If by longterm you mean 2020, I’d say yes. A quarterback is the most important offensive player in a system. But if that system is breaking down all around him, he has no chance. That goes for Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers (see him against the 49ers?) and anyone else you can name.

Q: O-line play has been down the last 3 weeks. What gives? — @brwong24

It does seem odd that since they’ve had all their starters together, their rushing game has slumped some. Rodney Hudson and Trent Brown are both playing hurt, but it’s not to the point where they’d be better off with backups. They need to re-establish their dominance in Kansas City.

Do the Raiders have the worst LB Corps in the NFL? Do you think that Mayock/Gruden will continue to punt on the position? — @boneaux

Very few teams take true linebackers early in the draft. The key is finding one after the first round that can go sideline to sideline and make plays. Because you almost never take a linebacker over an edge player or a corner. Even safeties are going ahead of linebackers sometimes.
Tahir Whitehead (59) leads the Raiders in tackles, but some fans are eager for new linebackers. AP Photo

Q: The Jets seem to have cracked the code on DC. Shut down the run and short passing game and force him to either throw deep or run the ball himself. He doesn’t seem to have a desire to do either one. Will he ever be able to change? — @MichaelG37x

Carr’s yards per attempt were at a career high going into the Jets game. The whole “yards in the air” thing to me is one of the most overrated stats going. That formula, by the way, would crack the code on most quarterbacks.

Q: Doesn’t it seem the Jets knew exactly how to play us? I repsect Jon Gruden and his staff but it seems are’re getting too predictable — Gabriel Correa (email)

Even Gruden seemed to hint maybe the Raiders could throw a little more on first down to change things up. But the big problem in the Jets game was getting beat on both sides of the line of scrimmage. Convincingly. They’ll never win when that happens.

Q: Understanding this loss is a team one (all phases), do you forsee Gruden implementing plays that get Carr outside of his comfort zone? — @gjrainey7686

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No. I see him doing whatever he can to get Carr into plays that he is comfortable with. What would be the point of putting any player in a position to run the plays which don’t suit their talents?

Q: Do you think Gruden and Carr will be more aggressive in the play calling and execution in KC? — @travisbrown100

Remember it’s going to be freezing cold and windy, very probably. So to think they’re going to start pretending to be the Greatest Show on Turf and pretend Trevor Davis and Zay Jones are Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce is probably not going to happen.

Q: Even though the Raiders we’re sleep walking and inept out there. That horrible roughing the passer call was a game changer. Why do we always get shafted by the refs? — @therealkennyest

Bad call. Not a game-changer. The game-changer was getting their heads handed to them on both sides of the line of scrimmage. You deal with bad calls. It’s called adversity. And I suggest the Raiders get lots of penalties because they commit lots of penalties. Especially pre-snap. And officials seldom have much to do with those.

Q: Both the Raiders and 49ers finished 4-12 last year and the Raiders fans/media are told how lucky we are and happy we should be to not be basement dwellers while the 49ers are destroying the league at every level. Raider fans need to be happy with crumbs and expect less? — @avendryl

Totally your call. Didn’t realize everyone was telling you how lucky you are to not be in the basement. The Raiders are better than they were last year. The 49ers are much, much better than a year ago. That’s reality. It’s also Year 3 for Shanahan-Lynch and Year 1 for Gruden-Mayock.

Q: Move on from Carr — @paulinwaban

Now? Or wait until you’ve got an idea who the replacement is? I think the latter approach would be wise. And if you don’t have someone better in mind, he stays.